The Truth About The Present
by Spark Plug x
Summary: Lyra is ready to spend her summer studying, like her boyfriend suggests she does while he's at camp. Somehow, she ends up at an inn by the beach, where all the people her boyfriend calls 'trouble' are working, including Proton. Lyra plans to avoid them and stay in her room, but something about them makes her want to stray from her 'perfect' image. cannonshipping!
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, this is the new story. I'll need a few ocs for it, but, I'll talk more about that in the 2****nd**** chapter, where the form will be. (If the form is no longer there that means I am no longer accepting characters, so please, do not continue to send me them if there is no form.)**

**(This might change, but, the story is sort of going to kinda follow one of my favorite books: The Truth About Forever. And book was super action packed, but I'll try to add some action through out this story)**

**Cal is made up. I didn't wanna pair her up with an actual character at the start because Cal will be bashed on. (Yes Cal will act like Silver but honestly I do not want to bash on soulsilvershipping because it's cute)**

* * *

Lyra Kotone sat back at her desk, flipping through another pamphlet of scholarships she needed to apply to before the end of the summer. Well, she had a few months until summer was over, because summer technically just started.

Last week.

And she already wished it was over. She just wanted to get back to school. Summers dragged on and she didn't really do much. Plus, her boyfriend, Cal, was off at some summer camp for the next 8 weeks.

She sighed and put her head on her desk. She could study for the SAT, or do some summer reading for her lit class, maybe practice some math or science problems in the workbooks she had stacked up on her desk?

Maybe she could go out back and play with her furret? No, it was curled up asleep on her bed.

Maybe should could call one of her best friends, Dawn and May? No, she forgot that they were both down at the beach for the next two weeks doing some marine biology camp.

Why didn't she sign up for a summer camp?

Oh yeah, she couldn't imagine herself spending 2 to 8 weeks away from home doing the same thing all the time. Which, now that she thought about it, was what she was doing now. Except now she was doing it from the comfort of her own home.

She didn't know what to do.

"Hey, sweetie." Her mother knocked gently on the door before opening it. "I know this is sudden and I hope I'm not interrupting your studying, but I just got a call from work. There's a new exhibit opening down on Feltchings Island at the beginning of fall. They want me to head down there in a few days to start helping them work on it. Now, I know you planned to stay here this summer and study, and you're old enough now, so I will trust you home alone if you want to stay here inste-"

"I'll go." Lyra said eagerly.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course!" Lyra exclaimed, standing up. "When are we leaving?"

"In about three days. We'll be gone for the whole summer. Is that okay?"

"That's great!" Lyra smiled.

"Alright then. Make a check list and bring everything you need. I won't be turning around if you forget something." Her mom said and left the room.

"Thank mew." Lyra sighed in relieve and pulled out an empty notebook. She grabbed a pen and started her check list. She liked to have things organized and she knew she'd forget something if she didn't make a check list.

Going to the beach didn't change too much, she knew that. Her mother would be working all the time and Lyra would know no one down there, but that was okay. She could sit on the beach and work on a practice SAT or read. She stacked the books and workbooks on her desk so she wouldn't forget them. She didn't want to do them, but, Cal would get mad with her if she didn't at least try, and besides, it was to help prepare her for her senior year of highschool and for the rest of her life.

Cal wasn't a bad guy. He really wasn't. He was smart, super smart. When he met Lyra at the start of junior year, he was surprised by how unprepared she was for college. He decided he would help her, and somehow along the way they started dating. They had been together for 6 months, but it didn't feel like it. To Lyra, it sort of felt like they were some old, boring married couple. They barely went on dates, barely held hands or even kissed. He was always busy to preoccupied with something else.

Lyra was worried one of the smart girls at the summer camp would steal him away, but she knew Cal would never do that to her. He loves her.

Well, he had never actually said that he loves her, but she knew he did.

She pulled out her suitcases from her closest and began to pack the books into a larger one. Her laptop followed and sat on the top, since she knew she'd use it again soon. The smaller one was soon filled with shirts, pants, shorts, other articles of clothing and shoes. She grabbed a small luggage bag that was made for toiletries and filled it with her hair products, brushes, and anything else she might need.

She went over her check list a few times before she and furret ventured towards her mother's room, finding the woman sitting in the middle of the floor, surrounded by clothes. The woman's kirlia shook it's head and gave Lyra a pleading look.

"Mom." Lyra mumbled, picking up and folding the clothes. She piled them into the woman's suitcase. "When will you stop being horrible at packing?"

"Never. You'll have to help me back for all my future trips. Oh gosh, I need to call the neighbor's and see if they'll housesit for us and get the mail…I need to cancel the trash pick up…" Her mother went on and on.

"I can handle it." Lyra cut her off and left her to pack the rest of her items. Sometimes Lyra really wondered what her mom would do without her.

* * *

"So, where are we staying?" Lyra asked after the two hour car ride. They were crossing the bridge onto the island and furret was running all around the car, excited to be somewhere new.

"This cute bed and breakfast! The director said it's very nice and it's big, so it's not like we're staying in someone's house. It's more like an inn, I suppose. The director said many teenagers work there in the summer, so you'll have people your age around." Her mother gushed happily. "Our rooms are jointed, so you have your own space and I have mine. Lord knows we could not share a room without one of us blowing a gasket."

"Exactly." Lyra agreed. People her age? She wasn't too sure about that.

They soon arrived a dark blue inn. It had a wraparound porch that was white and a deck for people to eat out on when the weather was nice. It was across the street from the beach and had a few empty lots on each side that were well kept and filled with green grass and flowers. So far, it looked great.

The inside wasn't much different. It had a small lobby, with a check in desk. To the left were the stairs, to the right was just a sitting room. The right also had a large hallway that led to an open room. It was filled with tables and it was obviously where you ate. There was a nice window table Lyra noticed that would be perfect for studying. She figured the double doors to the left of the room led to the kitchen, but she wasn't traveling back there.

She heard her mother call for her, so she returned to the check in desk, where an old man was.

"I'm glad you decided to stay with us. Ah, don't worry about your bags. My grandson will get them for you. Cassius!" He called. A few moments later, a boy entered the room. Lyra first noticed his hair, which was blond with a brown streak down the middle of it. It was spikier and like a hairstyle you would find on some person who belonged in a pop punk band or something. He was dressed casually, a white tank top with an unbuttoned white shirt with blue stripes, then cut off at the knees shorts. He had a name tag on that had an anchor on it and his name. "Can you please take these ladies bags and show them to their room? They're in North 65 and 66."

"You're killin' me here, gramps." He complained, but flashed Lyra and her mother a smile. "Espeon, wanna help a bro out?" He asked the pink pokemon, who was sleeping on the desk happily. It opened one eye and shook it's head. "Guess ya don't want a treat then. Fine by me." He picked up the suitcase with Lyra's books in it and took a deep breath. "Woah." He mumbled, not expecting it to be heavy. Espeon, seeing his struggle and deciding to be nice, jumped off the desk and used it's psychic powers to lift Lyra's mother's two suitcases and Lyra's smaller suitcase, while they held their own toiletries bags.

"So, where are you two from?" Cassius asked as they went up the stairs. "You look super familiar. Don't I know you?" He asked, looking at Lyra. She looked at him until it hit her.

"Oh, Cassius Rushton, right?" She asked, though she'd know that hair anywhere.

"Lyra!" He smiled, remembering. "Nice to see ya outside of 's math class." He stopped at a room and pull the key out of his pocket. "Here you go, ." He let Espeon place the bags in the room and handed the woman the key. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."

He went to the next room and repeated the process with Lyra. Her mother knocked on the door that the connected the two rooms, wanting Lyra to unlock, which she did.

"Oh, yeah, a few other kids from school work here too." Cassius said, right in front of Lyra's mother. "Maybe on our day off we can all hang out at the beach together?"

"Ah, that sounds wonderful. She'd love too!" Her mother smiled and Lyra inwardly groaned. She really wasn't too sure about that. Cal told her to stay away from Cassius. He was nice, but he had trouble written all over him.

"Sweet. I'll see ya later, enjoy your stay." He cheered before shutting the door. Furret instantly jumped onto the beach and Lyra started to unpack.

"Don't you wanna go hit up the beach?" Her mother asked.

"I want to unpack first." Lyra told her calmly, even though she was sort of mad at her. "Then I'm going to call Cal and tell him about this. He wanted to write me a letter, but I need to give him the address of this place."

"Ah, good idea sweetie." Her mother smiled and went back into her own room. "Don't forgot to study. I know the beach is enticing."

"I know mom."

"But don't spend too much time studying."

"Mom, I know, no need to worry." Lyra faked a smile and shut the door joining their rooms, and made sure to lock it.

Lyra got along very well with her mother. Lyra was mature. Her mother didn't have to worry about Lyra much. She didn't go out too much, and if she did she called her or texted her to tell her where she was and to ask permission. She studied and got good grades and never argued with her mother.

Lyra was the perfect child, and she wanted to stay that way.

Later on, once she was mostly unpacked, she gave in to her mother and left her room for a little tour of the place. Laptop in her hand and furret on her shoulders, she ventured down the stairs. A blonde girl was now at the desk, reading a book with the espeon stretched across the desk.

"Excuse me?" Lyra asked, a little nervous. The girl didn't really give off a cheerful vibe like Cassius or his grandfather had.

"Yes?" She asked, looking up from her book. Lyra's eyes went straight to the scar on the girl's left cheek. Is wasn't large and it didn't make her cheek looked deformed, but it was noticeable. "Can I help you, Lyra?"

Lyra was taken back that she knew her name, but Lyra quickly recognized the girl as Natalie Chem, another person Cal told her was no good. She was aggressive and sarcastic, according to him. "Oh, hello Natalie. Uh, I was just wondering if we were allowed to sit in the dining area if we weren't eating."

"Eh, I mean, ya can if you want. The waiters will keep harassing you if you do though. They can be assholes." She said and shrugged. "I suggest a rocking chair or swing on the porch, or the sitting area right there. If you do want to sit in the dining room, some window sills have cushions and you can read there."

"Oh, thank you." She said politely, surprised it went so well.

"No problem. Later." Nate said and went back to her book. She scratched Espeon's ear, making the pokemon purr.

"I have arrrriiivvveeedd!" A brunette girl cheered, slamming the door open. Her long curly hair bounced in a ponytail and her light purple eyes scanned the room. Her white dress twirled as she spun around, looking for someone. "Is Jordan not here yet? Darn. I got all cute for nothin'. Anyway, set me up with a room, Nate." Leighton brushed by Lyra, the smell of lavender filled the air. "Can I have a room on the top floor?"

"Uh, no. First floor, just like the rest of us who stay here." Nate said, irritation clear in her voice. Now Lyra could see why Cal told her to steer clear of her. Lyra recognized Leighton. Cal never said she was trouble but called her spoiled and rotten. Nate pulled out a key and slid it over to her.

"And the elevator is busted?" Leighton whined, looking up the stairs.

"It's one flight of stairs. That's like, 11 steps." Nate rolled her eyed. "Espeon, sweets, can you help her?" She asked the pink pokemon, who lifted up one of the girl's bags with it's powers and trotted up the stairs. "Be back down in twenty minutes. Your first shift starts soon."

"Urg." Lyra heard Leighton groan.

"This summer is going to rock." Nate grumbled, sighing.

"Nate, the guy with the elevator repair company called, did you call him back?" A male with green hair appeared in the room. He was tall, maybe 6 feet tall. His green hair spiked out on the sides of his head and he had green eyes that stopped on Lyra when he saw her. He turned his attention back to Nate, who was talking.

Lyra gripped her laptop tight and went out the front door to the porch, walking it twice before she found a good spot. The front of the inn actually didn't face the ocean. One side of the building did. The back and front faced empty lots that were obviously going to stay empty, since they had no for sales signs on them and looked like someone paid to have them well taken care of. The road by the inn wasn't very busy either, so there wasn't too much noise.

She really hoped Cal had replied to the email she sent earlier, because she needed to tell him that not just Cassius was here, but Natalie and Leighton, and, of course, Proton.

Proton was the one guy Cal said she should avoid at all costs. He was sharpied out with trouble written all over him. He was mean, nasty, and cruel.

Lyra hadn't experienced this first hand and she knew rumors weren't always true, but when you hear enough of them, you start to believe in them. Besides, Cal was right about a lot of things.

All Lyra really knew was that she was going to be stuck here for the summer.

* * *

**I really tried to go slow with this, but I feel like I went too slooww…anyway, forms to submit a character are in the next chapter, unless I delete them, which means I am not taking anymore characters. I really hope I get some cool characters! **


	2. Chapter 2

**I am still taking characters! Please remember to read the rules, and please, do spend some time reviewing the form. ****I'm a lil worried that I'm getting a lot of the same types of characters, (female, 16, nice but shy. Where are all the guys? The ass kickers? Sorry, but I don't need any more shy characters, cmon bros, be creative) but I'll keep the forms open for a few more days~!**

**If I decide to not take your character, please don't get upset. ****I need certain types of characters for this story. **

**I'll only be taking about 2 more characters, if that. I have two more main ones to introduce and then another character too~! I hope I'm spacing them out well. I don't want to throw too many at you.**

* * *

"Lyra, I am sure you are overreacting." Dawn said. She, May, and Lyra were on skype together. May's head appeared on the screen as she moved into view.

"So, you're on the island too? I think we have this weekend off to go and explore! We'll come and visit you!" May exclaimed, happy. "I wanna check out this criminal filled inn."

"Shush." Lyra shushed her, looking around the porch to make sure no one else was around. "I just…I dunno what to do. Cal hasn't emailed me back yet."

"He's probably busy! I know we are. We might not be able to visit this weekend…but we will sometime soon! Oh, we've got to go!" Dawn said, waving goodbye before the screen went black. Lyra sighed and shut her laptop. She stared at the ocean that was across the street. It was still her first day here, so she should try to stay open minded.

"Hello, Ma'am, do you need anything?" A girl asked, startling Lyra. "Oh, I'm sorry for startling you."

"It's fine, I was just…zoned out." Lyra turned to the girl. She either had a dark tan, or she was a mix of different ethnic backgrounds. Lyra couldn't tell. Her hair was dark brown with purple streaks in it and her smile was bright. She was built, seriously. She looked like she worked out at the gym every day. It was a little scary.

"I'm Raquel, by the way. Is there anything you need?" She pointed at her nametag.

"Oh, no thank you." Lyra said politely, nodding her head. "Nice to meet you, Raquel."

"Nice to meet you too, Lyra! Cassius told us you might be hanging out with us one day at the beach? That will be fun. I love seeing hot shirtless guys running around." She laughed loudly at herself. "If you need anything, just holler." With that, she returned inside, leaving Lyra alone.

Well, she thought she was alone.

"What are you doing here?" Proton asked, leaning against the railing.

"My mother's job. I decided to come with her." Lyra answered, a little afraid of the male. "So, you all work here?"

"Yup. Cas' grandpa owns the place, so we come and work down here when we can." He popped a piece of gum in his mouth and stretched. "I'll see you around, then." He looked at her before disappearing inside the inn, now leaving Lyra alone.

She took a deep breath and exhaled. She really needed to just stay in her room, away from all of them. She remembered who Raquel was now. She got too competitive in gym class one day last year and knocked a kid over. He scraped his knee up pretty badly and it gave Raquel the reputation of somewhat of a bully. Even without that situation, the girl was scary. She could probably beat anyone up if she wanted too, including Lyra.

So, she had Cassius, the over friendly outgoing swimmer who could drown her, Natalie, the aggressive sarcastic girl who could burn her alive, Raquel, the tough, athletic girl who could send Lyra's ass into outer space with one kick, Leighton, the spoiled rotten princess who never worked, and Proton, the cruel, scary ring leader of this terrifying bunch

She grabbed her laptop and stood up, ready to head up to her room. Furret followed her into the inn, staying close by her feet.

"Oh wow, what a cutie pie." Raquel said as they walked by. "Is it a girl or a boy?"

"Boy." Lyra said, stopping so Raquel could pet her pokemon.

"I bet he's tough in battle. You look like a strong boy." She smiled as she scratched under his chin. "I think you would get along with Rocky, my larvitar. He's my little baby."

"Until he evolves into a big baby." Lyra mumbled, thinking of a huge tyranitar.

"That won't be for a well." Raquel said, shaking her head. "I do hope that we'll get to hang out." She added before hurrying over to a table to wait on a guest.

"C'mon Furret." Lyra called to her pokemon, who ran after her and then ahead of her, taking the stairs two at a time.

"I swear, I will pay someone to fix this elevator. How hard can it be?" Leighton groaned, making Natalie roll her eyes.

"It's the electrical work. The elevator people say nothing is wrong with the elevator." Nate explained, flipping through her book.

"Oh! I know a guy who can fix it then!" She smirked at Nate, who just raised her eyebrows.

"Don't try to set me up with him, I already have a boyfriend."

"Oh, Tabitha is not a boyfriend! You two never see each other!" Leighton started to rant, but Lyra decided it was best not to stick around and continued up the stairs to her room.

* * *

Lyra heard laughter outside her window later that night, around 7pm, and peaked out to see Raquel playfully shove Cassius, but he almost fell over due to the force. They, Proton, Raquel, Nate, Leighton, and Cassius, started to laugh again and head down the boardwalk that was lined with shops and restaurants.

They looked like they were having fun…but her laptop dinged, meaning she had an email. This drew her attention away from the group and back to her reality.

_Dear Lyra,_

_So you decided to go to the beach with your mother? I hope it won't distract you from your studies. The SAT's are very important to colleges and I would hate for you to not get into a good college because you goofed off. As for those….juvenile delinquents, I suggest you stay as far away from them as possible. It's not wise to befriend them. What would people at school think if when we returned from summer vacation and you were friends with them? They'll just drag you down. _

_ Anyway, tell me once you finish the few sections of the workbooks I gave you, Cal_

Lyra re-read it over and over again, wishing there was a little more to it. Of course, he was focused on her studies, but that was just how he showed that he cared. He was not into PDA, at all, so they were not an affectionate couple. At first, it threw Lyra off, but she grew used to it.

She replied back a short paragraph and decided to call it a night.

* * *

Lyra had been at the inn for a few days and nothing much had changed. She mostly hung out in the study area or in the lobby, since it was nice and quiet.

"Hey, young lady." Cassius' grandpa greeted Lyra when he entered the room. "You know my grandson, right?"

"Oh, sort of, sir." Lyra said, shutting her book and turning her attention to the older man.

"He's an idiot, I know." He shook his head and Lyra raised her eyebrows in surprise. "But he's a good boy. He said you're very smart and a hard worker. Since you'll be here for the whole summer, would you like to work here? I see that you hang around here most days, so maybe you'd like to make some cash to go out and spend? You don't have to answer right away, of course."

"Really?" Lyra asked, actually considering the offer.

"Certainly. There are many jobs around here, you can learn a lot." He nodded his head and gave her a gentle smile. "I know you are focused on your studies. Your mother has told me all about how you became an A+ student almost over night. She is very proud of you."

This made Lyra very happy, but more stressed. She needed to continue to be an A+ student and mature, but, getting a job would be nice. "Well, thank you. I'll think about it."

"Take your time." He said and left again as two boys entered the inn.

"Yo!" A blond male exclaimed. His brushed his bangs out of his face, but they just went back in front of his eye anyway. He had a black and blue streak in his hair and he had a wide smile plastered on his face.

"Oh, you two finally decided to show up?" Leighton asked, coming out of the small backroom behind the check in desk.

"I had things to take care of." The other boy, a male with black hair that went to his shoulders said, in a monotone voice.

"Better late than never. You two have to share a room though." Leighton swirled a key around her finger, smirking at them. "But Jordan, you can always share a room with me~!"

"Thanks, but I'll be okay." Who Lyra assumed was Jordan, said, a small smirk on his face as Leighton pouted and threw the key at them.

"Hey, don't be rude to the guests." Cassius chided Leighton as he entered the room. He frowned at the brunette girl and shook his head. "Nate's nicer to them than you are."

"They're my friends! Cassius, this is Mikhail and Jordan." Leighton introduced the two males. The blond, Mikhail, just stared at Cassius, mouth slightly opened.

"Oh, I've heard tons about you two." Cassius smiled and shook Jordan's hand, then Mikhail's.

"We've heard much about you as well." Jordan replied, since Mikhail was unable to. "We were wondering when we would get to meet you. You'd think we'd see each other in school."

"It's a big school." Cassius shrugged. "Ya goin' show them where their room is, Leighton?" He asked, turning to the girl.

"Ah, not really. They'll be working here soon. They need to know where things are."

"You're absolutely hopeless. Why do I keep you around?" Cassius asked.

"Because you loveeee me." Leighton smiled and Cassius laughed.

"Okay, sure, let's go with that. Anway, it was nice meeting you two, see ya around. "He chuckled as he headed back to the study to finish putting books away.

"Damn, sign me up for whatever team he's playing on." Mikhail said, staring at Cassius. "He's….gorgeous."

"I knew you'd like him. Those pictures I showed you of him just aren't as good as the real thing, are they?"

"Not at all." Mikhail sighed happily. "Now, show us to our rooms."

"No." Leighton shook her head.

"I'll show them." Raquel rolled her eyes as she came down the steps. "Let's go you two." She picked up their two suitcases with ease and headed up the stairs. They looked at Leighton but followed after Raquel.

"So, Lyra." Leighton started, leaning against the desk. Lyra turned around in her seat to look at Leighton. "Will you be working here?"

"Ah, I'm not sure. I need to focus on my studies."

"Lyra, please." Leighton shook her head once more, in a disappointed manner. "You've been here a week and all I see you do is sit around and do homework. I cannot allowed this behavior any longer."

"Excuse me?" Lyra asked.

"You heard me. Why don't you take the job offer? Do you really not want to work with us?"

"That's not it at all-"

"You sure?" Leighton asked, narrowing her eyes. She might act like a spoiled rotten princess, but Leighton wasn't an idiot. "Or does your boyfriend say not to work with us?"

"Cal has nothing to do with this."

"Then take the job." Leighton smiled, though it was more of a smirk.

* * *

"Hey, excuse me." A girl that looked a little out of place at the inn said to Lyra, grabbing her attention. She had light golden blonde hair with black streaks layered throughout it that fell a little past her shoulders. She had black headphones around her neck and a choker with a silver angel dangling from it around her neck. She had multiple piercings on her ears and had one on her eyebrow. Her amber eyes lit up when Lyra smiled at her.

"Yes, what can I do for you today?" Lyra asked, putting her book down.

Okay, she gave in to Leighton and took the job. At the moment, she was learning how to run the check in desk. Natalie was with her, handling a rude guest. They had been busy non stop all day and everything that could go wrong, did. Somehow, the two girls managed to pull everything off with no angry guests, except the one Nate was dealing with.

"Do you have any pamphlets on activities to do on the island?" She asked. "I sort of came here spur of the moment, so I don't know what there is to do."

Nate slid a few pamphlets towards Lyra to help her, since she hadn't gone over any of the favorite tourist destinations. "Here you go." Lyra handed them to the female.

"Oh sweet, thank you." She smile and started to flip through them. "I really wanna go check out this lighthouse at the bay, but going alone seems lame….hey, you wanna come with me?"

"I'm sorry, what?" Lyra asked, surprised.

"I'm Stephanie Halix! I know that it was something sudden to say, but I've seen you around the inn the last week and you looked a little bored. I've been trying to figure out how to talk to you. When is aw you working the service desk, it was a golden opportunity." She explained.

The girl seemed nice enough, but, Lyra wasn't too sure about this. "I'm Lyra. Lyra Kotone." She introduced herself. "Ah, well…"

"Oh, you don't have to say yes or no now. I'm going to research these things and find out what I really want to do first. I'm sure we'll be friends soon enough and then we can hit up the light house together." Stephanie smiled and skipped up the stairs happily.

"Damn." Nate sighed, putting her head on the desk once the guest left her alone. "You got the super nice guest and I got the asshole one. What a surprise."

Lyra didn't know what to say, so she didn't say anything. Nate accepted this response, knowing she wouldn't get anything out of the girl. "You think you got the check in desk under control?"

"Sort of.." Lyra mumbled. "I won't be left here by myself, right?"

"Well Jordan and Proton will be manning it mostly. Who do you want to work with next? I know it sure as hell isn't me." Nate mumbled, sitting up straight now.

Lyra really was unsure how to respond to that.

"Quiet one, aren't you? I really pinned you for a talkative type." Nate continued, looking over at her. "But hey, whatever floats your boat, I suppose. I know you don't want to work with me, so I'll just ask Cassius to train you for something. He's better with new people."

"Oh…alright." Lyra finally mumbled. She was uncomfortable. She was starting to question why she took the job and she had only been working for a day! Still, it had been an interesting day. It was much better than sitting around studying.

"If he gets annoying, just punch him." Natalie said after a few silent moments.

"…..okay."

"…That was a joke. I'm the only person allowed to punch him, other than Leighton." Natalie just looked at Lyra with a hopeless expression. "This is going to be a long summer."

"Yes….yes it is." Lyra bite her lip. Since she was working with Nate, she should know a little about her? "So…uh…you and Tabitha are still together?"

"Of course." Nate answered, looking over at her. "Don't know if we'll be together by the end of the summer with the way that that bastard is acting." She mumbled harshly.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She waved her hand. "If a guy, or girl, isn't giving you the affection or attention you deserve, walk. I don't see why you stay with Cal. You two barely act like a couple, besides, he acts like he has a 45ft stick up his ass."

"No he does not." Lyra said, though he sort of did. "He's so smart and helpful. He really helped me when I was struggling with being in a new school. He was my first friend, besides Dawn and last school wasn't the greatest. I don't know how I passed 9th or 10th grade, and I was sure I was going to flunk 11th grade when I got to the new school, but Cal became my tutor and now I have straight A's."

"How romantic." Nate blew her bangs out of her face.

"How did you and Tabitha meet?"

"Middle school." She shrugged, not going into detail. She rubbed the cheek that had the scar, and Lyra wondered if it had something to do that it.

"So, Lyra, you decided to come and work with us?" Raquel asked after carrying a guest's bags up. "We're getting a shipment of produce in tomorrow morning." She said to Nate, who smiled.

"Yeah, Lyra is working with us, in fact, she'll be helping you with that tomorrow morning."

"W-W-What?!" Lyra asked, shaking her head. "Oh no, I'm too weak for that."

"We have machokes to help us, and my charizard, Flare, will help us too." Raquel smiled, happy to be working with Lyra. "You can tell me all about your boyfriend. I do want to know more about him."

* * *

**Okay, sorry for a kinda boring chapter, but, you really can't rush too much into this. Hopefully the next one will be more interesting! I don't wanna rush the development of characters, but Proton will be in the next chapter a loottt more! **


	3. Chapter 3

**I took the form down early because I decided I already have enough characters.**

**And I adore Dawn and May, but I'm going to use the anime versions of them and sort of make them super annoying? I dunno, but, just letting you know, I adore those two girls, so any bashing I do of them is just for this story. **

**Cheerleaders are cool too. I was friends with cheerleaders in highshool. They were nice and funny, so, all bashing of them is not serious.**

* * *

Her mother was surprised that she had gotten a job at the inn, but was happy for her.

"_You'll get lots of experience working here, which is good for when you want to get a job back home." She had said._

"Yeah, experience…" Lyra muttered to herself, hanging over the railing on the back porch, staring out at the ocean. Lyra felt her arms ached and she groaned, wishing she hadn't helped lift boxes of produces and other foods earlier that morning.

"Who are you talking to?" Proton asked, startling her so she fell over the railing. "Are you okay?" He asked, hurrying over to her. She was laying, face down, on the grass. She groaned and sat up, spitting out some grass. She took Proton's outstretched hand and she pulled herself back over the railing, very embarrassed.

"Thanks." She mumbled, still not able to talk to him. After spending the morning with Raquel, she was able to have a decent conversation with her, but Proton was a different story. She heard the wingulls cries above them and a beautifly landed on a flower near the railing. "So…"

"Like working here so far?" Proton asked.

"Yes. Its only my second day, but, it's interesting…" She trailed off, remembering how Flare, Raquel's charizard, had burnt a box of lettuce when it sneezed, startling Raquel and making her drop a box of oranges. The oranges spilled everywhere, and everyone ended up on the floor, in pain, and many oranges were smashed. Somehow, they got it all cleaned up and luckily, an extra box of lettuce was sent and Cassius' grandpa, Mr. Hughes, didn't even found out about the mess.

"Yeah, the guests are loving the smell of oranges that is coming from the kitchen." He smirked and Lyra flushed.

"That was all of Flare and Raquel's fault there."

"I know, I know." He nodded his head, the smirk still present.

"YO, Lyra!" Mikhail poked his head out of the door. "Cas needs you in here."

"Oh, okay. I'll…uhm, see you later." She nodded to Proton and hurried into the building.

"You got the hots for him or something?" Mikhail questioned, noticing her pink cheeks. She shook her head, her braid smacked against her head, causing her to groan.

"You alright there?" Cassius asked, smiling at Lyra with a worried expression. "First the oranges, now the braid. You've had a difficult morning, haven't you?"

"I think I'm meant to just sit in my room and study all summer." Lyra sighed, wondering if she made the right choice.

"Don't think that way." Cassius said and put his hands in his pockets. "It's been an interesting day so far, and all those mistakes made it interesting. How do we have fun when everything goes perfectly? That's impossible, for one, for things to go perfectly, and two, it wouldn't be fun. We wouldn't be able to use our brains to solve problems or even appreciate the times where things do go right." He explained, surprising Lyra.

"But, there are perfect things." She argued, thinking of Cal. He was perfect.

"No one is perfect." He shook his head, a little more serious. "A night, in a sense, could be perfect."

"Last night was perfect." Mikhail added, nodding his head. "But tons of shit went wrong, making it interesting."

"Good example." Cassius said and Mikhail looked so happy. "Now, I want you to meet a couple of people. This is Jo." Cassius said and a girl with choppy, bright blue hair smiled at Lyra. Her violent eyes were warm and friendly, but Lyra knew better. Jo was the head gossip girl at school. She knew everything about everyone, it was a little scary.

"Nice to see you again, Lyra." Jo shook her hand.

"And the boy over there is Taylor." He pointed to a boy who was serving a guest. He had shaggy brownish-orangish hair that had two pieces sticking up in a cowlick manner, almost like he couldn't get them to stay down when doing his hair in the morning.

"You and Jo are on cleaning duty now. Natalie and Raquel have already started on floor two, so you two can go join them and just follow their orders, okay?" Cassius asked and both girls nodded their heads.

"Where do I go?" Mikhail asked.

"Oh, you're hanging with me today, hope you don't mind. C'mon." Cassius went back into the double swinging doors into the kitchen.

"I love this place." Mikhail smiled and ran after him.

"How cute, he has a crush. I'll have to remember that." Jo smirked and winked at Lyra, before heading into the lobby and then up the steps. "When is the elevator going to get fixed?"

"I gotta ask Volk if he'll fix it." Leighton called as Lyra walked back.

"He better fix it!" Jo called down the stairs. Even though she just came earlier in the morning, she was already comfortable with everyone. Lyra felt a little out of place again, but tried to ignore the feeling.

"Oh, good, you two are here." Raquel said as she saw them come down the hall. "Can you take room 20?" She asked and went into the room she and Nate were working on.

"What do you want us to do?" Jo asked, opening the door to the room with the key on the cart they had. It was a tiny cart, like ones the maids in hotels use.

"Oh yeah." Nate mumbled, dusting off her hands. She walked into the room and looked around. "Okay, the cart has toilet paper, towels, and cleaning supplies, you know, all that good stuff. First, dust. You can open the windows if you'd like, I suggest it. Dust the furniture, scrub the shower, change the sheets, make the bed, change out the towels, make sure it has toilet paper in there, empty the trash, and vacuum. Move the furniture to vacuum." She explained quickly. "We'll be down the hall if you need us." She left them to their own devices.

"Boringgg." Jo complained, opening up the window. "I wanna go explore the island. The warm and tropical like climate makes the pokemon here so happy and interesting. Way different than the ones back home, even though it's only two hours away."

"I haven't been outside much." Lyra confessed, going into the bathroom to start cleaning.

"Seriously?" Jo asked, looking back at her. "You can swim with milotics here and wailords! Doesn't that excite you? There's a whole new world out here!"

"I guess…"Lyra mumbled. "My boyfriend, Cal, isn't too into pokemon."

"Oh, I know." Jo said and went to take the sheets off of the bed.

"Oh yeah, you do…" Lyra said. "You know everything about everyone, don't you?"

"Yeah, like how Nate and Tabitha's relationship is way worse than she's letting on? Or how Raquel tends to go for those egotistical guys, like Drew or Green? Or how Jordan is the smartest in our class, beating out your boyfriend? Or how about information about Proton?" Jo questioned, letting Lyra onto about how much she really knew. Lyra always thought it was just fake how much Jo knew, but, it wasn't.

"No way he's beating Cal." Lyra said, shaking her head.

"Guess your boyfriend doesn't tell you everything, right?" Jo laughed, piling the old sheets by the door. "If ya want more info, there's a cost." Jo smiled such a devious smile, Lyra realized that maybe she should have listened to Cal.

Yet, something in her told her that he was wrong. These people were interesting. She enjoyed doing something like this. Moving, going through mistake after mistake, accident after accident, disaster after disaster, it was…fun?

It was different. That fit it better. It threw her world of order off its axis, and she loved it. The thrill was a rush to her system.

The tub in one room overflowing with bubbles because Jo zoned out was one problem. The vacuum sucking up a guest's left behind earrings was another problem. Lyra's furret and Jo's bannette decided to play, and knocked over a vase. Nate had to run to catch it and barely made it in time.

"I swear to every legendary pokemon-" She started, furious. "-Stop causing trouble you two!"

"We can't help it!" Jo whined, not wanting Nate angry with her. "Things happen."

"Only with you two." Nate sighed, rubbing her temples. Her Espeon hopped onto her shoulder and glared at the two girls, its ears flat. "I need a break. Be back soon." She left the two girls to finish the room up, all without incident.

"I hope she isn't too mad." Lyra said to Raquel as they all started new rooms.

"She's fine. Her espeon freaks me out. I'm not big on eeveeloutions. I like Cassius' umbreon though, he's chill." Raquel explained. "So, Lyra, there's a party tonight! You want to come?"

"Uh.."

"I'm going!" Jo told her, a big smile on her face. "Why don't you join us?"

"Oh, I couldn't. I have to study." Lyra told them, shaking her head. "Maybe next time."

"Fine." Raquel sighed, a slight pout on her face. "You'll miss all the cute boys though."

* * *

Lyra saw a zubat fly past her window as she heard two cars start up in the parking lot. She peaked out the window as loud music started to play.

Cassius was in his jeep, fiddling with the stereo. Proton was in the back. Jordan pulled up next to him, all windows down in his Honda. Leighton was in the front, with Mikhail, Jo, and Taylor in the back of it. Cassius beeped and Raquel ran out to the jeep and hopped in the back, before reaching up to try and change the music. Cassius slapped her hand away as Nate ran out of the building, jumping into the jeep. They pulled out of the parking lot quickly as the music was turned up. Jordan followed and Lyra could hear Leighton's laughter and Nate and Cassius singing to a song before the two cars disappeared from her sight.

This happened for a few nights. They asked her to join them every day, but she always turned them down. She went to her laptop, one night, happy to see Cal had replied to her email.

_Dear Lyra,_

_So, you got a job at the inn? Why ever would you do that? That was not a smart thing to do at all. That will cut into your time to study or apply for scholarships, and it's not wise to hang out with those misfits that work there. They will just drag you down and cause you to flunk your senior year. Please just listen to me and do as I say because I feel that it will benefit you. You are too good to clean rooms or carry boxes around. That is work for pokemon and for others who don't have bright futures._

_With that being said, I hope you decide to quit. Please reply and update me soon, Cal._

Lyra could barely understand what she was reading. She had been so excited in her last email, explaining all the things that happened, how much fun she was having. It had been two weeks since she came to the inn, and one since she started working.

She was still a little shy around them, but she had gotten used to them and she felt they had gotten use to her. She wished Cal had been happy for her, but he wasn't. Not at all.

She heard a knock at her door and she shut her laptop, too annoyed to deal with Cal.

"Hey! Come along." Leighton smiled as Lyra opened the door. She grabbed the brunette's arm, yanking her out of her room. Lyra barely had time to shut her door before she was dragged down the stairs by Leighton and out the door.

"Where are we going?" Lyra asked as Leighton looked both ways before running across the street, Lyra in tow.

"To see my good friend, Volkner, so that damn elevator can be fixed." Leighton said cheerfully, walking along the boardwalk that was on the side of the beach. "So, Lyra, how is the boyfriend?"

"Uh, just fine, perfect."

"There you go, using that word again."

"What word?"

"Perfect." Leighton rolled her eyes. "I know, I describe myself as perfect every day, but I'm not even perfect." She flipped her ponytail, smirking. "I think he's an asshole, but, that's me. Be with who you want to be with."

Lyra didn't feel like responding, so, she didn't. The two walked in silence, listening to the ocean and the pokemon fly and swim and run around with their trainers. "Do you like to battle?"

"Oh, not much." Lyra shook her head.

"Neither do I. I prefer to be a coordinator. Nate does too."

"No way." Lyra said, surprised.

"Yeah, and Jo's older sister is a coordinator too. It's nice to be around people like you, huh? I bet you feel out of place with us, don't you?" Leighton questioned.

"No-well…" Lyra fumbled over her words, unsure want to say as an eevee ran past, it's owner chasing after it.

"Use water gun!" A girl shouted to her marill, who shot the water blast at a chimchar, making it cry out.

"No. I, I like being around you guys." Lyra admitted and Leighton smiled.

"It's a done deal, then! You need to come out with us one night." Leighton declared as they approached a beach house. "Oh Vollkknnnneerrrrrrr!" She called out, going around to the back of the house.

"What?" A male with spikey blond hair asked. His blue eyes looked bored, borderline depressed.

"I need you to do some electrical work on an elevator, right, now."

"I'm busy."

"No, you aren't. I'll pay you, let's go." She ordered. He glared at her, but grabbed his tools and followed the two girls as they turned back around to the inn. "Thank you. I have a girl who I think you'll really likeee!"

"Please, don't set me up with anyone." He groaned, not amused. Lyra was surprised he even was coming to fix the elevator. She knew him, sort of. He did some electrical work for the school. He had graduated from there about two or three years ago.

"This one is different than the last." Leighton promised, a big smile on her face. Lyra knew she was talking about Nate.

"Doesn't Natalie have a boyfriend?" She asked and Leighton glared at her.

"Not for long." Leighton said through gritted teeth.

"Oh that's just great. Please, let me break up a happy couple." Volkner said sarcastically, making Lyra laugh.

"This will be true love! Besides, those two haven't been happy in forever!" Leighton exclaimed, sure of herself. "You going to the party over on the West Side tonight?"

"Flint is dragging me." Volkner shrugged, brushing his bangs out of his face. "So, yes. You?"

"Sure are!" The girl continued to chatter, but Lyra zoned out as they passed by the two trainers battling.

It's not that she didn't enjoy battling, she did to some extent, but it never really held her interest for too long. The marill rolled into into a ball and rammed against the chimchar sending it flying as a few swamblu's flew by.

Pokemon were just pokemon, she guessed. It the olden days, people were more focused on battling, but, that wasn't the main focus anymore. Tons of people still battled, of course, but most people kept pokemon around for companionship.

"Hey, Lyyyrraaa?" Leighton waved her hand in front of the brunette's face. "Wanna go out with us tonight or not?"

Lyra thought a few moments. "Sure." She said. It's not like she was really looking forward to studying tonight, or replying to Cal's email.

"Sweet." Leighton smiled, like she knew that Lyra would say yes.

* * *

"I'm riding in that?" Lyra asked, pointing to the blue jeep, with two 'salt life' stickers on the bumper. "Aren't those things super dangerous?"

"No, this one has good reinforced doors and body." Cassius said, looking at his car. "Besides, it's too hot to not have one of these bad boys. Hope in." He helped her into the back and Raquel joined her. Natalie was already in the front seat, fiddling with her ipod that was hooked up to the radio. Cassius got in of the driver's side and started the car.

"The party is on the west side, right?" Jordan asked, pulling up next to them. Leighton was riding shotgun, like she was every night, while Mikhail, Taylor, and Jo were in the backseat.

"Yeah, you need directions?" Proton asked, climbing into the jeep, sitting right next to Lyra.

"I got em!" Leighton nodded her head. "And Nate, that guy I was talking to you about will be there, since you were too busy cleaning rooms to say hi to him earlier."

"Leighton, I already have a boyfriend." Nate groaned, annoyed.

"Things change." She shrugged and then winked at Lyra. "Let's go!" She exclaimed and Jordan pulled out of the parking lot. Cassius followed him and warm air hit Lyra's face. The back two windows, which were just plastic coverings, were up, but Nate and Cassius had theirs down.

"I know you've only been here two weeks, but do you like it so far?" Cassius almost shouted as Nate started to play music.

"Y-Yes." Lyra gripped onto her seatbelt as a loud bass started to play.

"Love this one!" Raquel shouted, smiling widely.

"_Doubts will try to break you. Unleash your heart and soul"_

Lyra felt herself tense up as the song entered its second verse. She could barely make out what they were saying, but Raquel's singing helped her figured out the words.

"_Trouble will surround you. Start taking some control"_

She was terrified. She felt like they were going to crash and the music was far too loud.

"_Stand up and deliver, your wildest fantasy._ _Do what the fuck you want to_ _there's no one to appe-e-ease"_

Lyra looked to Proton, who seemed pretty relaxed about it all.

"_Ooh, 1, 2, 3, 4, fire's in your eyes and this chaos, it defies imagination. Ooh, 5, 6, 7, 8 minus 9 lives"_

Lyra never heard music like this before. Cal only like classical music and jazz, but this stuff was a mix of pop, rock, techno, and everything else it seemed. She didn't know how to react, but she was sure she had a panicked look on her face.

"_You've arrived at panic station!" _

'How fitting' Lyra thought, shaking her head. She noticed Proton glance at her then lean forward and tap Nate's shoulder. The blonde turned to him, saying something, then leaned forward and turned the music down, by a lot.

"Sorry, Lyra." She said and looked back to the brunette. "It just is nice to have a song so loud you can just scream the lyrics."

"It's a detox song." Cassius explained. "That's why out music is so loud when we leave the inn. We have one detox song, then we relax."

"Dealing with rude people all day is a buzz kill." Raquel continued. "But you survived."

"Great…let's not do that again, please." Lyra squeaked out, still shaken up.

"You'll get used to it." Proton shrugged.

The rest of the car ride was filled with more songs like Panic Station. It was different than what Lyra usually did on her week nights.

Then they arrived at the party.

It was at someone's house, Lyra didn't know who. It was filled with people her age and older, drinking beer or soda, dancing, playing beer pong, socializing, or having pokemon battles.

"See any cute boys?" Raquel asked, standing by the jeep with Lyra as she scanned the yard.

"Oh, I'm not really looking."

"You're crazy! There's Drew." Raquel pointed to the green hair male. "Isn't he cute?"

"He's an ass." Lyra mumbled. Her best friend, May, complained about how much of a jerk the male was all the time.

"I like that. I'm going to go talk to him." Raquel announced, leaving Lyra by the car.

"Having fun?" Proton asked, approaching her with a drink in his hand. "Want some?" He held it out and she shook her head. "It's just water. I don't drink."

"Oh." Lyra mumbled, a little embarrassed. "Sorry, I just thought…"

"Its fine. None of us drink." Proton shrugged and leaned against the car. "I'm not big into parties, Natalie and Jordan and Taylor aren't either, but the others like seeing everyone."

"I'm not big on parties either." Lyra admitted.

"Surprise surprise." Proton chuckled, sipping his drink. "So how's the boyfriend?"

"Fine." Lyra replied, wishing she had something to drink now. "He's enjoying camp."

"Camp?"

"He's at science camp." Lyra said and heard Proton snort. "It's a great camp."

"For nerds."

"Says the boy who is working away his summer at an inn."

"Says the girl who was going to waste her summer away studying for school and the SATs." He fired back, a smirk present on his face. Lyra frowned and turned away from him. "Actually, you might still spend your summer doing that. I'm surprised you even came out with us."

"I decided to give it a go, okay?"

"Don't get defensive. I'm glad you decided to come out." Proton confessed, shrugging. "You needed to get out. Though, you're part of the crew now, so you'll be coming with us wherever we go."

"The crew?"

"Yeah. Cassius, Natalie, Leighton, Jordan, Mikhail, Raquel, Jo, Taylor and me. Give or take a few others. That's us." Proton told her, sipping his drink again. "Been this way since last summer. Now you're in it. Sort of. You already nabbed Cassius' and Leighton's approval. I have to say though. Leighton has many levels of approval."

"I have to be approved by everyone?"

"We all were." Proton shrugged once again, like it was nothing. "Don't worry about it. They like you."

"What about you?"

"Still pending." He chuckled. "I can't make a decision yet. I barely know you."

"You know me from school."

"Yeah, but, the only things I hear are rumors and what others say about you. Want me to judge you based on how I view you in school?"

"How do you view me in school?"

"Quiet girl. Does whatever her boyfriend says. Got caught up with _those _people, so now she doesn't have a life outside of the boyfriend and the over dramatic cheerleader friends." Proton said and Lyra frowned.

"T-That's a horrible view of me!" She exclaimed, ready to slap him.

"That's why I haven't judged you yet. I know there's more to you than that." He looked off to Raquel, who was battling against another person with her buizel. "And you probably think I'm some criminal in the making, who is cruel, cold, and can never stay out of detention, don't you?"

Lyra didn't reply to this. They both already knew the answer. She wasn't so mad at him for what he said about her now, because she started to realize that it was true.

"Look, I just….I listen to Cal for a good reason, okay? Let's just leave it at that." She crossed her arms and looked to the side, ready to go back home. "And I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"Judging you based on what other people said about you." She admitted.

"Don't worry about it." He extended out his arm, offering his cup to her, like a peace offering.

"Thanks." She took it and took a sip, deciding maybe, even if it's just for a little bit, she should try to be something different. Maybe something better, maybe something worse, but different.

* * *

**I like the idea of pokemon being more like pets in this story. I mean, there will be pokemon battles, but not many. For one, I hate writing them. They're boring, and two, this story focuses more on the characters, that's why its an AU. So please don't expect tons of pokemon battles (I am horrible at writing them anyway.) **


	4. Chapter 4

**I plan to do a ch****apter/half chapter that focuses in on Lyra with each oc, so please, sort of bear with me. All of it will be relevant to the story and the plot. (This isn't just about her and Proton getting together and those chapters will greatly affect the story.)**

**Thank you so much for all the reviews!**

* * *

Lyra just finished up typing her reply to Cal's earlier email when there was a knocking on her door. She sent the email and then opened the door and saw Cassius, his hair messy and he was panting.

"Sorry…..lemme….catch…my breath…" He leaned against the doorframe. "Sorry, I just ran from the beach to here. Look, I know it's your day off, but could you please, please cover for me at the front desk? Misty called out sick, _hungover _from last night's party, and they need me to cover for her."

"Cover for what?"

"Lifeguard. I'm a lifeguard on my days off." Cassius told her. "And you'd seriously be saving my ass if you did."

"Sure, I can do that." Lyra said and was pulled into a hug.

"Thank you!" He squeezed her then let her go. "C'mon." He dragged her down the stairs to the front desk, where Mikhail was sitting boredly. "Mikhail, I gotta go cover for Misty, so you'll be working with Lyra today."

"Oh." Mikhail's face dropped, but then he smiled at Lyra as she took the spot on the stool next to his. "When do you have to go in for duty?"

"Uh.." Cassius looked at the clock on the wall. "Oh shit in two minutes." He scrambled up the steps to the first floor to go to his room.

"He's a dork." Mikhail shook his head as Lucario came from the backroom.

"Lucario! Help them out if they get busy, okay?" Cassius hurried down the stairs with bright red swim trunks on and a white shirt with the word 'LIFEGUARD' on the back in red. He had a whistle in his hand and sunglasses in the other. "I'll see you two later love you bye!" He rushed the sentence together and was out the door before they could even understand what he said.

"It's easy to tell he's used to running late." Lyra said, chuckling. Lucario sighed, embarrassed by his trainer. "You know, I thought you were Nate's pokemon." Lyra turned to Lucario. "I saw you battling in the park one day a month or two ago."

"I bet he's bitcin' in battle." Mikhail patted the pokemon's head.

"I can take him." Raquel piped in, chuckling as lucario made a face at her. "Have you guys see Nate?"

"She hasn't come down yet? Probably still asleep." Mikhail shrugged and looked at Lyra.

"Oh, I'm unsure of where she is." Lyra answered and Raquel sighed.

"I should make her get up at the crack of dawn to come and train with me." Raquel shook her head. "That's why she's so weak and short. She doesn't eat right and doesn't exercise properly."

"To her defense, you are tall." Lyra replied, looking at the 5'10 girl. Lyra was barely 5'4. "When do you train?"

"Around 6am." Raquel smiled at her. "You should join me one day! I jog about a mile down the beach and back and do a few yoga moves and then work on core strength with my pokemon."

"Oh no thanks." Lyra shook her head but Raquel just shook her head back.

"Nope! I'll surprise you one morning and take you out with me! If you hear screaming, it's Nate." Raquel said and jogged up the stairs.

"Volkner is coming again today to finish the elevator." Leightoin announced, slamming her hand on the front desk. "So, don't do anything stupid. I'm convincing to hire him as an electrician for this place."

"Why?" Mikhail asked, confused.

"Hello? Nate and him would be perfection for each other. I'm trying to get all the couples I like together! Like you and Cassius."

"Oh my god shut up." Mikhail's face went bright red. "Shut up shut up!"

"Lyra won't tell." Leighton winked at Lyra.

"Just please stop. Nate is dating Tabitha, isn't she?"

"Minor details." Leighton waved her hand as shouting was heard upstairs.

"Did I come in at the wrong time?" Volkner asked, peaking his head through the front door. He came in fully and walked up to the desk, looking at the ceiling where the shouting was coming from.

"Nope~!" Leighton smiled and Lucario just looked at her. "What are you lookin' at?" She asked him. "You are just like Cassius, always looking down on my plans!"

"They aren't very good plans in the first place. "Mikhail muttered as Raquel came down the stairs, Natalie thrown over her shoulders.

"I have a paper to do and it's my day off!" Nate shouted, thrashing about.

"Not anymore!" Raquel announced and put her down in the middle of the lobby. Natalie glared at Raquel, though the effect was lost as she had to look up at her, because Natalie was scarcely 5'3. "Cassius has to be a lifeguard today, so his second shift goes to you."

"Hell no. I got stuff to do." Natalie crossed her arms, much like a child.

"Can you believe she's older than me?" Raquel asked the group as Natalie's face went red.

"It doesn't matter when you're taller and stronger than me! And I am not working today. I've had enough of dealing with people and I'm tired. Look at these bags under my eyes!" She pointed to the dark circles and frowned.

"This is why we go to bed at a healthy time." Raquel said. "Honestly, you're so practical with everyone else but when it comes to your own health you're just like, 'Fuck it lets stay up until 5am and get up at 8am and barely eat anything all day and do this day after day even though it's seriously bad for my health and I could end up really damaging my body and this could cut my life short-' " Raquel stopped as Nate held up a hand, stopping.

"Silence." Natalie said in a threatening tone.

"This is a horrible first impression you two." Leighton chided. "This is Volkner! He's going to be our new electrician soon!"

"Ah, hey." Volkner said and his eyes landed on Nate as Raquel nudged Nate, a huge smile on her face. "I'm Volkner."

"I'm Raquel!" Raquel smiled and shook his hand.

"Natalie." Nate said, eyeing him. She and Volkner looked at each other for a few moments before she sighed. "I'm going to go help Jordan and Proton in the study room. I'll take over Cassius' shift later so you can have the rest of the day off, Lyra." She turned quickly and sped off into the other room.

"I think she likes you." Leighton announced once Natalie was out of hearing range. "Now Raquel, what boy do you have your eyes on? I know Jo likes Morty and I'm working on that, but…" She trailed off as she grabbed Raquel's arm and pulled her into another room.

"Is it always so….confusing here?" Volkner asked.

"Yeah…" Lyra sighed. "But….it's not so bad."

* * *

Lyra really had no clue what to even say to Mikhail. She figured he'd be talkative, but he was actually very quiet.

"Sorry." He mumbled as Lyra glanced over at him. "I'm really not that great with people."

"It's fine." Lyra reassured him. "It's not like I'm over hear chatting you up." She turned to the computer and logged on, wanting to check her email. "So you have never meet Cassius before coming here?" She brushed her brown bangs out of her face as she glanced over at him. She figured she might as well try to find out a little about him. It might make him feel more comfortable around her.

"Nope. I knew about him from Leighton and I'd see pictures of him. I'm actually friends with him on Poke'Face and we've chatted before, but I've never met him. He's a busy guy."

"Really?" Lyra asked, surprised by this and that Cal has replied to her email so fast.

"Yup. Swim Team, environmental club, volunteer work." Mikhail listed. "He teaches kids how to swim. How adorable is that?" Mikhail put his head on the front desk and groaned. "So outta my league."

"Nah, don't think that way." Lyra patted his back until he felt better.

"Thanks." He smiled at her and then glanced at Lucario. "You better keep your mouth shut, buddy."

Lyra chuckled and turned her attention back to the computer screen. She clicked on Cal's email, hoping he was happy that she was having a good time.

_Lyra,_

_It concerns me greatly that you are ignoring my advice on staying away from them. They seem like good people now, but you barely know them! Don't you forget that Raquel can beat you up whenever she feels like it and has done it to people before. Jo may seem like a girl you can trust, but wait until she sells your secrets to make a profit. Cassius flirts with every girl he lands his eyes on and then moves on to the next one, all while running around and causing mischief and damaging private and public property. Leighton is spoiled rotten and will step all over you to get what she wants. _

_Lyra, my feelings for you are strong, but while I'm at this camp, all my focus needs to be here and not worrying over you and the mess you are getting yourself into. This is why I am suggesting we take a break. When I come back from camp, we can decide if we want to try and have a relationship once more._

_ Cal_

Lyra took a sharp intake of breath, not believing what she just read.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Mikhail asked, tilting his head slightly. "You look like you just saw a ghost or something."

"H-He broke up with me." Lyra said slowly.

* * *

"Is there something wrong with Lyra? She looks sick." Jordan said as he put away another book. "I hope Mikhail didn't say anything stupid."

"Knowing him, he probably did." Proton mumbled and dusted off a book. He looked over to Lyra and paused. "It looks like something is wrong with her…." Proton noticed, furrowing his brows. She said something to Mikhail, but he couldn't read her lips. Mikhail looked a little panicked, but Lyra shook her head and said something else.

"Mikhail freaks out a lot." Natalie stated and put another book on the shelf. "It's good he's talking with Lyra, so don't interfere."

"I won't. He needs to branch out some." Jordan looked over at the two again before going back to work. "He needs more friends than just me and Leighton. I'm glad we came here, it'll help him a lot."

"Looks like it's helping Lyra too." Nate added. "Proton, hey, look, I know she's cute, but you need to stop staring at her." The blonde girl snapped Proton out of his thoughts and he glared.

"I wasn't staring. I just zoned out and happened to be looking in her direction." Proton didn't know why, but he sort of liked Lyra. Hanging out at the party last night with her was nice. She could be pretty snarky when she wanted to be, nothing like how he thought she was. "She's different."

"And you like different?" Nate questioned, eyebrows raised.

"It's….different." He muttered, looking back over to Lyra.

* * *

"Hey, don't worry." Mikhail said, trying to make Lyra feel better. "He's just a jerk anyway."

"But…" Lyra trailed off as Taylor bounded down the stairs.

"Woah, who died?" He asked as he saw Lyra's face.

"My relationship." She couldn't tell if she was going to cry or get angry. "Don't tell anyone."

"Oh, sorry about that." Taylor muttered, pushing his orangish brown hair out of his face. "I really cannot help you with that one, but do you want to hear cheesy pick up lines?" Taylor asked and then continued, not waiting for an answer. " 'Did I die, Angel? Because I must be in heaven!' Oh, this is a good one. 'If you were a pokemon, I would choose you.' " He joked. " 'Do you come with coffee and cream, because you're my sugar!', 'I was looking at a light bulb today and it made me think of you and how you light up my world.',' Baby, if you were words on a page, you'd be what they call FINE PRINT!' "

Lyra and Mikhail laughed at a few of them, mostly because they were so cheesy.

"Looks like my job is done." Taylor smiled again and left them, going to look for Jo.

"He's funny." Lyra said as she watched him go. She exited out of her email, not ready to reply to it.

"Yeah, I should use some of those pick up lines sometime." Mikhail said and Lucario shook his head. "What do you know?" He asked, pouting at the pokemon. "I hope you feel better, Lyra. We're going to the pier tonight. There's a carnival going on. Do you want to come?"

She had only been here for two weeks, but somehow, her whole life had been flipped upside down. She didn't even know which way to go, but she knew the right direction wasn't sitting in her room mopping.

"Yeah…"

* * *

"Hey, I'm sorry about you and Cal." Jo whispered as the group walked along the boardwalk towards the pier. The two girls were further in the back so no one would hear them.

"I would ask how you found out, but you do know everything."

"I do, and, Taylor told me. He said you looked upset and that maybe you needed a girl to talk to it about. I really don't think I'm the best girl to talk to it about though." She shook her head. "I mean, I'm just crushing on someone at the moment. I've never really been in a relationship. If you really need someone to talk to, I'll listen, but if you want advice, the best person is probably Natalie."

Proton saw Lyra and Jo talking and waited until the two caught up to the group to speak to Jo. "What's wrong with Lyra?"

"Eh, if you want info, there's a cost." Jo smirked as Proton scowled at her. "Boyfriend issues." She admitted, a little scared of the green haired male.

"Oh."

"You don't want to know anymore?" Jo asked, raising her eyebrows. "You looked at her a lot today. You getting a crush on her?"

"No, I just am...curious about her. She told me last night she used to be really bad in school. Is that true? And do you know why she moved here?

"Oh.." Jo's expression darkened a bit. "I can't tell you why she moved here. It's too personal for me to say, even if you paid me to. I can tell you though, that up until 9th grade, she was a straight A student."

"Hey Drew!" Raquel greeted the green haired male as the group walked past the waiting line for the ferris wheel. He did that hair flip that Lyra always found annoying, but Raquel must love because her eyes lit up.

"Might as well get in line." Taylor said, knowing there was no way they were going to get Raquel away from Drew anytime soon. "Want to ride with me, Jo?"

"Of course." She smiled at him and he blushed, smiling back.

"Jordan, we're riding together." Leighton said, even though the couple was holding hands already and everyone knew they were going to ride together. The line moved up and Drew got into a pokeball with Raquel, who looked very happy.

"Oh, hey Jo." A male with golden blond hair said as he turned around. He had a purple sweatband and a matching scarf on.

"Morty!" Jo exclaimed and Taylor frowned, crossing his arms. As the line moved up, Lyra looked around, trying to figure out who she would get on with. The pokeball could hold more than two people, but, mostly people rode it in pairs, unless they were a group of three or had kids.

Taylor let out a sigh of relief when Morty got into the pokeball with Faulkner. He and Jo climbed into the next one and the line once again moved up. With how they were now standing, Cassius was going to get on with Mikhail, Leighton and Jordan would ride together, she and Proton would ride together, and Nate would be alone.

"Sorry I'm late." Volkner ran up to them, joining them in line. "Flint was being a pain in my ass."

"Sounds like him." Leighton muttered. "You showed up just in time! Natalie was going to have to ride by herself!"

"We wouldn't want that, would we?" Nate questioned sarcastically. Leighton glared at her as Cassius and Mikhail got on the ride. She and Jordan got on next, then Proton and Lyra.

"You okay?" Proton asked as they sat down next to each other on the ride. Lyra was a little nervous, but she was pushing all of the things Cal said out of her mind. She was going to have a clean slate with all of them. "I heard you were having boyfriend issues."

"Does everyone know that we're on a break?" Lyra questioned.

"You're on a break?" Proton asked, surprised. "Jo just said you were having boyfriend problems. Wait, was that why you looked so upset this afternoon? Why does he want a break?"

"Yeah, he emailed me and told me. He finds me to be too distracting. He wants to focus in on camp and not have to worry about me or the trouble I'm getting into with you guys." Lyra sighed, her hands folded in her lap.

"Well, he's an asshole for doing that to you." Proton said, surprising her. The ride stopped to let more people on, then continued again. "Jo told me you were a straight A student up until freshman year." He said after a few moments of silence. "I'm not trying to pry into your private life or anything, but I'm curious."

"Curious about what?"

"About you." Proton looked at her seriously. "If I'm going to judge you or pass approval on you, I want to know more about you."

"Fine, what do you want to know?" She asked.

"Why did you move to Canella?" He asked. Lyra stared back into his gold eyes and then looked out the window at the ocean and the darkening skyline.

She hadn't told anyone, not even Cal or Dawn or May about why she moved to Canella

"My…my dad. During the summer before my 10th grade year, he got into a really bad car accident and had to take pain medication." She started, voice a little shaky as she remembered it. "We, my mom and I, thought he was doing okay, but during the middle of my sophomore year my mom found out he was still taking the pain medication when he didn't need to take it. He was addicted to it." She waited for Proton to say something, but he didn't. "They got into a he fight over it. She wanted him to go to rehab, but he didn't want to. They got a divorce and my mother moved us to Canella to start over."

"Lyra…"

"It's fine. My dad is in rehab now and he's actually doing well. He writes me letters sometimes. It's just, my dad and I were best friends. We would go on adventures together whenever we could. We'd drive and drive until it got to dark or we'd go take random day trips to the beach and go hiking or scuba diving. It was always different and random. Once we moved, I didn't want to do that stuff anymore. It reminded me too much of my dad. I met Cal, and he was stable and predictable and I guess that's what I really needed then." Lyra continued and looked over at Proton. He was listening, intently, waiting for Lyra to finish. "But now he wants a break and I…I don't know what I want."

"Well I don't know what you want either." Proton shrugged. "But, I don't think what you want is to wait around for Cal. I think you need a little adventure, but, it's what you want."

Lyra let out a deep sigh. She didn't know what to do, and she couldn't even believe she told Proton that story. "Why do you think I need adventure?"

"You just don't seem happy. Maybe you just need something different." He said, unsure.

"I dunno." She mumbled, furrowing her brows. Maybe she needed something different? "I'll try."

"Good." Proton smiled at her and Lyra found herself smiling back as the ferris wheel stopped. Proton helped her off the ride and the two walked over to Leighton and Jordan.

"Hey! Did you like the ride? I thought it was a little short." Leighton whined. "Oh well….Taylor and Cassius ran off to that water gun booth to try and win a prize and I think Raquel went to another booth with Drew."

"Tay better win me a prize. I gave him money to go play." Jo muttered. "We should go play when Volkner and Natalie get off the ride."

"Look how cute they are together." Leighton squealed as Volkner and Nate got off the ride. Nate was laughing loudly, barely able to walk because she was laughing so hard. "This is a success. My plan is already in action."

"This worries me a little." Mikhail muttered.

"So I was just like, fuck off, and I punched him in the gut." Natalie said and Volkner chuckled.

"What a great story." Jordan muttered, only catching the end.

"She was telling me about when she first met Cassius." Volkner explained. "I thought it was a good story."

"Not as good as how you met Flint."

"See?" Leighton smirked, once again, winking. "Just call me cupid!"

* * *

**Sorry for taking so long with this one, my beta reader broke her laptop charger, so she's been unable to read and double check my chapters for spelling errors and other mistakes. **


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